Human Rights in Dementia Care

The first practice guide written on human rights and dementia - a topic of increasing relevance to health and social care professionals, people living with dementia and their family caregivers

A must-read for care professionals, people living with dementia, and family caregivers, this practical handbook answers key questions about human rights in dementia care. Drawing on research and practice, it explains the principles of human rights approaches and how to apply that theory to enhance your practice and improve quality of life.

Human rights are a key issue for all healthcare and social care practitioners, and almost every aspect of dementia care has a human rights dimension. How can we balance the individual's right for dignity, autonomy and privacy against the backdrop of time constraints, duty of care and limited resources? Can a person with dementia be supported to participate in decision making? Is assistive technology always empowering? What must it feel like to be denied a dementia- specific service because of one's age?

This practice guide addresses these along with other critical questions, helping you to better understand the diverse and often complex dimensions of dementia caregiving. It provides a new framework to enable you to apply a human rights approach to real life situations, placing the person with dementia at the centre stage and keeping their dignity, independence, sense of purpose and quality of life at the fore. The book builds on person-centred principles, uses case studies to demonstrate theory and provides new analytical tools to support all those committed to best practice in dementia care.